A two-time gubernatorial candidate was arrested on Monday and charged with the 1984 kidnapping and murder of a 12 year old girl in Colorado.
Steven Pankey, 69, who had unsuccessfully run for Idaho governor twice in 2014 and 2018, was charged with the murder of Jonelle Matthews in Greely, Colorado nearly 36 years ago.
The indictment alleges that Pankey took Jonelle from her home on Dec. 20, 1984, and shot her in the head during the kidnapping.
It also said that he exhibited strange behavior over the years, and that he “intentionally inserted himself in the investigation many times over the years claiming to have knowledge of the crime which grew inconsistent and incriminating over time.”
According to the Metro, Greeley Police Chief Mark Jones said at a news conference on Tuesday that the arrest was “36 years in the making.”
“‘For over three decades, the disappearance of Jonelle Matthews has left our community with many unanswered questions and a void that has not been filled,’ Jones said. ‘With the arrest of Steve Pankey for the murder of Jonelle Matthews, some of these questions are starting to be answered.”